With Corona, many mini-jobs have disappeared, especially in the catering trade. The concern of the companies at the time: once you turn your back on the industry, you won’t come back. But things turned out differently.
Erfurt (dpa/th) – With the end of the corona restrictions, Thuringia’s restaurateurs can increasingly rely on mini-jobbers again, especially in the university towns. The reason is that the students have returned in many cities, said the managing director of the German Hotel and Restaurant Association (Dehoga) in Thuringia, Dirk Ellinger, the German Press Agency. This group in particular, as well as pensioners, made up a not inconsiderable proportion of mini-jobbers in the catering trade. “But in rural areas it’s still very difficult to find temporary workers.”
In the course of the Corona closures, many mini-jobs in the catering trade had disappeared. At the time, restaurateurs worried that the temporary staff could permanently turn their backs on the industry. According to Ellinger, that did not happen: “A large part has returned to the company.” Nationwide, almost twice as many mini-jobbers were employed in the catering industry in the first quarter of the year as in the same period of 2021, as the mini-job center in Bochum announced.
According to Ellinger, students or pensioners who help out on a 450-euro basis are essential for many companies: “It’s about absorbing peaks, which we urgently need in the industry.” Maintaining permanent employees for larger events is unaffordable.
According to Ellinger, after the end of the corona restrictions, many restaurateurs are still feeling reluctance. At major events such as the Rennsteiglauf, for example, there is still an “insanely hesitant registration behavior”. The period from October in particular is still fraught with uncertainty. And Ellinger does not expect catch-up effects due to unusual and rescheduled events: “If you didn’t celebrate your milestone birthday in time, you won’t make up for it this summer.”
